“The angel of the Lord appeared to him (Gideon) and said, ‘Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!’” (Judges 6:12 NLT)
When the angel came to Gideon he was “at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites.” Gideon was a lot of things, but he wasn’t a “Mighty hero,” yet that’s exactly how the Lord saw him (Read Gideon’s story in Judges 6-8). Gideon’s power came through his trust in God and his dependence upon the reliability of his conversations with the Lord.
Gideon’s faith was a bit shaky at first and he relied on signs to strengthen his weak faith, but God saw potential that was worth His effort, so, the Lord responded and finally Gideon took the Lord at His word and obeyed Him, triumphing over the Midianites and becoming a Judge over Israel for 40 years.
Gideon’s example is important to me because I haven’t always had strong faith. Faith is a “spiritual muscle” that must be exercised and strengthened over time and Gideon shows us a picture of how the Lord will take us from the “winepresses” of insecurity and fear and lead us onto the spiritual “battlefields” of life, giving us victory over the evil one and building our confidence in the Lord our God.
Is your faith weak today? Is your prayer life lacking? The Lord is seeing you in your fear and weakness and is saying to you: “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” There are battles the Lord wants to train you to fight for your lost loved ones and friends, those in your spheres of influence who may never see their need of Jesus unless you intercede on their behalf, then boldly share your love for them and for Jesus with the courage only the Lord can give you.
Another very valuable lesson I believe the Lord is teaching us through Gideon is not only to do the right thing but do it for the right reason. God’s desire to make Gideon a mighty warrior wasn’t for Gideon’s glory or honor, but for His. That’s why he told Gideon to send thousands of would-be troops home, leaving him with only 300 men to fight an army of thousands. Not good odds if you’re a military strategist.
But when God is your Commander-in-Chief, you don’t question, you obey and that’s what Gideon did and that’s why he was so successful. Putting our priorities in order, including where we fit into the overall scheme of things, is a critical component to meaningful and effective prayer. To believe answered prayer should exalt us or give us stature with anyone but God, is to misunderstand the vital nature of prayer.
Prayer is a means of gaining and maintaining humility, not seeking to exalt ourselves in any way, but to exalt, honor, and glorify our King. That’s why prayer is NEVER about us, and only and always about the Lord. James MacDonald wrote: “Prayer is purifying – as you pray, you learn to want not just right things, but right things for right reasons.”
One of the beauties of prayer to me is that only the Lord knows, not only those for whom we’re praying, but why we’re so diligent in our intercession. Yes, of course, I tell you I pray for my family, friends, and neighbors, but you don’t know their names or their needs. You won’t know until (maybe) in eternity who the Lord saved, healed, or helped because of my prayers or yours, we may never know, but that’s not why we pray.
We pray to honor and glorify our Savior as He alone gets the credit for whatever He does in someone’s life because of our prayers. And to me, that’s the purifying power of prayer. It purifies our heart and gives power to our prayers. Thank You, Jesus!
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 